Subsidiaries of Foreign Companies

Foreign subsidiaries play a key role in Greater Montréal’s economy. Statistics Canada states that when compared with Canadian-based corporations, foreign-controlled companies offer higher productivity performance, higher wages and improved chance of having an R&D centre. That is why Montréal International (MI) and its partners proactively support these companies with services designed to facilitate their investment projects and their growth in the region.

At a Glance

Over 2,200 foreign subsidiaries operating some 2,300 facilities

Over 195,000 direct and 100,000 indirect jobs

10% of all jobs and 13% of private sector jobs

20% of the region’s GDP, nearly $31 billion in annual expenditures

$4.1 billion in annual government revenue

Almost 40% of all subsidiaries belong to the following three high-tech clusters: aerospace, life sciences and health technology, and information and communications technology

A major source of innovation and productivity

Top 10 Foreign Subsidiaries by Number of Employees

Company

Industry

Country of Origin

Total Employment

Pratt & Whitney Canada

Aerospace

United States

6,000 – 6,499

Bell Helicopter Canada

Aerospace

United Kingdom

2,000 – 2,499

Ubisoft

ICT

France

2,000 – 2,499

ArcelorMittal

Metals

United Kingdom

2,000 – 2,499

Standard Life

Finance and insurance

United Kingdom

2,000 – 2,499

Merck & Co

LSHT

United States

1,500 – 1,999

ABB

Energy

Switzerland

1,500 – 1,999

Rio Tinto Alcan

Metals

Australia

1,500 – 1,999

Ericsson

ICT

Sweden

1,500 – 1,999

Rolls-Royce Group

Aerospace

United Kingdom

1,500 – 1,999

U.S. Subsidiaries

The United States is the source of nearly half of all foreign subsidiaries and the jobs that they generate in the Greater Montréal area.

Companies based in four states account for nearly half of all jobs created by foreign subsidiaries in the Greater Montréal area: New York (19%), California (11%), Connecticut (10%) and Illinois (9%).

The country’s ten largest states account for almost three-quarters of the jobs created by U.S. subsidiaries. Greater Montréal’s next-door neighbour, the State of New York, is the source of the largest number of the region’s foreign facilities (12%). California, with the largest population and economy in the U.S., is a close second. Next come Illinois, Connecticut, New Jersey and Texas.

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French Subsidiaries

France is the second most important country of origin of foreign subsidiaries established in Greater Montréal, with 13% of all facilities and 12% of all jobs.

Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishing and distribution companies, set up its main production studio in Montréal. It is the metropolitan area’s largest French subsidiary. Other major French companies such as Veolia Transdev, Sanofi and Danone are also present in Greater Montréal.

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U.K. Subsidiaries

The United Kingdom is the third country of origin of foreign subsidiaries established in Greater Montréal, with 6% of all facilities and 8% of all jobs.

The country’s presence is particularly noticeable in finance, aerospace and metals. The Montréal subsidiaries of Standard Life, ArcelorMittal and Rolls-Royce Group each have at least 2,000 employees.

Top 10 – Largest U.K. Subsidiaries by Number of Jobs

Company

Industry

Total Employment

ArcelorMittal

Metals

2,000 – 2,499

Standard Life

Finance and insurance

2,000 – 2,499

Rolls-Royce Group

Aerospace

1,500 – 1,999

Aon Hewitt

Human resource consulting

500 – 999

Autobus Transco

Logistics and transportation

500 – 999

HSBC

Finance and insurance

500 – 999

Wolseley HBC-R Group

Wholesale

250 – 499

Belron

Automotive

250 – 499

Imperial Tobacco

Tobacco manufacturing

250 – 499

Aviva

Finance and insurance

250 – 499

Subsidiaries of ICT Companies

The Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) cluster’s foreign subsidiaries have generated over 35,000 jobs in more than 400 facilities. They alone account for more jobs and units than the LSHT and aerospace clusters combined, even though Greater Montréal is acknowledged as a world leader in both of the latter industries.

As one of the foremost video game production centres, Montréal has attracted many of the industry’s major players including Ubisoft (France), Eidos Interactive (Japan) and Electronic Arts and Warner Bros. (U.S.). Moreover, information services leader IBM, and telecommunications giant Ericsson, are established in the Montréal metropolitan area.

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Subsidiaries of Aerospace Companies

The Aerospace cluster’s foreign subsidiaries account for more than 11,000 jobs in more than 30 facilities in the Montréal metropolitan area.

Aerospace is an important part of Montréal’s economy. Home to Bombardier, the world’s third-largest aircraft manufacturer, Greater Montréal is also one of the world’s three major aerospace hubs.

With over 6,000 employees, Pratt & Whitney Canada ranks as the region’s largest aerospace subsidiary. Other major players, including Bell Helicopter Textron and Rolls-Royce Group, also have a significant footprint in the area and work closely with many local suppliers.